Introduction

A quick look at the key figures for the tourism industry is enough to become aware of its impact, relevance and development. The total number of tourists went from 25 million worldwide in 1950 to 1.1 billion in 2015 and is expected to surge to 1.8 billion by 2030. The industry accounts for one out of every 11 available jobs and 9% of world GDP. It boasts $1.4 trillion in exports, which represent 6% of total global services exports.

The 4th Tourism Summit organized by IESE Business School in collaboration with the prestigious Cornell University School of Hotel Administration will cover the trends, challenges and key drivers of growth and change in the industry.

There are two key factors in the industry’s growth projection. The first is the digitalization of tourism and all it represents, including online immediate booking and social tourism. The second factor is the increasing relevance of emerging economies, particularly China, in terms of the quantity of tourists exported and in terms of investment in the industry.

Not only is the industry growing, but it is also being changed and disrupted by innovations and new trends such as the sharing economy. The outcome is the onset of new business models and tourism approaches for cities and countries.

The 4th Tourism Summit will walk attendees through a series of panels and presentations. We will start by covering the main drivers of growth and change in the industry and will continue with an in-depth discussion about how cities can design models for tourism in order to create a healthy and profitable ecosystem for the industry and their region. With all of this knowledge framed, we will examine how investors can capitalize on it to identify the most attractive potential investments.